Helping
by Miss Fiction95
Summary: After watching Frey work so hard every day, Vishnal wants to do something for her. Unfortunately, things don't usually go the way we plan them. Please note rating change. It's finally complete!
1. Chapter 1

Fall leaves were beginning to drop rapidly from the branches of trees that lined the edges of the city, signalling to all the changing of the seasons without question. As the last few months of Autumn counted down, all of the townspeople knew better than to pester Frey as she was their resident farmer and Princess. With the disappearance of Lady Ventuswill and Arthur's preoccupation with matters of trade and inter-kingdom relations the majority of work in town fell on to the shoulders of the young woman despite her personal responsibilities to her crop. As the end of season approached Frey could only be found on one of her fields tending the crops for harvest or sifting through documents in the main room of the castle.

Vishnal admired her hardworking can-do attitude and envied the sense of ease that she seemed to radiate even when she was stressed. He missed having the opportunity to speak with her at any hour of the day, but he understood as a butler that her duties must come before her leisure. . . that didn't mean he didn't miss her though. She was always running about in the last few days of the month, and while he knew he need only give her a few days time he found it difficult to leave her alone. Instead, he vowed that he would do everything in his power to make her life easier.

The young Princess was sort of a perfectionist in the first place, and would not even think to ask for help in the second, so Vishnal began to wrack his brain to think of ways he could help. Perhaps he could cook her a hearty meal and bring it to her so she didn't have to leave her work? Scratch that. That was definitely not something he could do by himself and he worried about presenting the hardworking young woman with something disgusting and causing her more trouble than he would help. He didn't think she would appreciate him doing her laundry, though he briefly entertained the thought of her flushed face as she stammered about the invasion of privacy before dismissing it. For the life of him, he simply could not come up with anything he could do for the capable young woman without causing the dear girl more work to do through his actions.

"What do you think?" he asked Clorica one morning. They were waiting for Volkanon to come back from tending to some business in his office. Vishnal had just finished explaining his predicament after returning from waking the princess up at her strict 6AM deadline. She had thanked him, kissed his cheek, and launched right out the door to get her morning chores out of the way. He was feeling even more helplessly desperate than before to help her.

"Mm," the sleepy girl hummed pensively, for once her brow furrowed in concentration. "Have you tried asking her what would be helpful?"

"No!" Vishnal replied quickly. "I want to surprise her. I don't want her to have to ask, I just want to be there for her. . ." Clorica sighed but smiled knowingly. She, as well as everyone else in town aside from the young woman herself, was painfully aware of Vishnal's schoolboy crush on the amnesiac princess and it was plain to see that he would do just about anything to please her so long as he didn't actually have to confess.

In the end, she proved not to be terribly helpful to Vishnal's endeavours. Despite his protests she simply continued insisting that he ask Frey what he could do to ease her workload and that his gesture didn't lose any profound meaning simply because he had asked. But a butler wasn't supposed to have to ask, not one that was any good anyways. Volkanon came and went, but Vishnal found that he'd missed half the meeting anyways with his mind so focused on Frey anyways.

Altogether it was a rather uneventful day. Vishnal busied himself by cleaning Lady Ventuswill's chambers, despite the fact that they were presently unoccupied, though he'd never admit that it was because he could get a good view of Frey in her fields from the large window that surrounded the entrance. A few times he stepped outside, offering her lemonade or sandwiches or something similar, but she always declined with a smile and shooed him off.

"Are you sure? Just because it's getting colder doesn't mean you don't have to stay hydrated!" he insisted. She shook her head, long pigtails swirling around her.

"Really, I'm okay," she chirped back, "I've just got to finish this one last thing and then I think I'm finished for today anyways." She stood straight and propped herself up on the handle of her tool to grin toothily at the other. "I'll be inside in a while to eat something, I promise. You go on." He couldn't really argue with that, he supposed. So he left her be and stopped hovering for the time being. He had neglected quite a few duties that morning and would have to tend to them presently.

* * *

"Frey!"

The false princess turned around at the sound of her name and grinned when Doug waved an arm over his head enthusiastically at her. She greeted him in kind and ran to open the far gate for him to enter the fields.

"You'll have to walk while we talk," said Frey, "I've just promised I'd be finished soon so I definitely can't stop."

Doug looked pleased. "You're almost done, that's great! I was just talking to Leon and he mentioned that he was pretty bored today. I am too, you know. It's my day off so Granny shooed me out of the shop, something about hovering too much over her lately, I don't know, whatever," Frey chuckled as the dwarf began to ramble, and pressed a palm against his back to make his walk with her as he did so. "Anyways! I thought if you were almost done then we could all go check out across that bridge that Volkanon just repaired for you, get some adventuring in before the day is through!"

Craving some adventure herself, Frey replied with enthusiasm tenfold. "You bet! I just have to water the far field here and grab a bite to eat. Then we can definitely head out!" Doug grinned back.

"Hey, let me help you out then," he insisted, plucking the watering can from her grip and plunging it into the cold water to fill it. "I'll take care of the last of this, you go grab a bite, and I'll run get Leon when I'm finished here."

Reluctant but brimming with the anticipation of their spontaneous trip, Frey relented. Thanking him profusely she took off at a run towards the castle, barrelling into the far room of her half of the castle and digging through the fridge for something simple.

Vishnal, who the princess had bolted past in her dash for the refrigerator, followed behind her by a few steps. "My my, so you were hungry after all, hm?" he teased. Frey glanced up at him from her knife that easily slid through the skin of a tomato on the counter.

"Not really, but I promised you didn't I?" she said, toothy grin in place once again. "I always keep my promises. Doug was just helping me finish up in the field and then we're going to head out for a bit of adventuring!" Vishnal froze at that. "It's been so long since I've had an extra minute to leave town, this will be so great. It was very nice of Doug to offer," Frey concluded, pressing two slices of bread around the ingredients she had prepared and taking a bite.

"O-Oh, Doug is here? When did he arrive?" Vishnal asked.

The princess answered around a mouthful of sandwich. "Just after you left, actually. Hey, grab some of this, I bet you haven't eaten yet either."

So Doug had arrived just after he did and asked if Frey needed a hand with anything, just like that? She must have been so grateful. What an idiot he was, wanting to surprise her. It was selfish of his, he realized with a sense of dread. She wouldn't have cared if he'd helped her to her face or not, she wouldn't have thought any less of his actions for asking what she needed done. What did it matter what she thought of him, anyways? He was a butler, he was supposed to serve her because that's just what butlers did. He just wanted to be a hero, and it came at the cost of sure not creating _more _work for her to do, but not even helping her and leaving that same workload for her anyways.

"No," he stammered back finally after a pregnant pause. "No, I've eaten. I couldn't. You should have let me fix that for you anyways." Frey looked at him strangely.

"I can put together a sandwich myself, Vishnal."

"Of course," he replied, "but you shouldn't have to. That's my job, after all."

She laughed at that, a lovely little sound, and he berated himself for enjoying the musical lilt in it so much. "Your job isn't to wait on me hand-and-foot, Vishnal. It's okay, I can handle it."

His brows furrowed at that. "So Doug can help you but I can't?"

"What? No, I didn't say that at all, Vishnal. Don't be stupid, what's the matter? What's Doug got to do with anything anyways?" She seemed to be getting frustrated. Her wide eyes regarded him in confusion and as Vishnal opened his mouth to apologize for being so foolish, because he knew he certainly was picking a fight about nothing, he found that no sound came out.

"It's my job," he stammered stupidly.

"It's no one's _job_ to take care of me. Not Doug's, not yours, not anyone's," she snapped at that. She picked up the remaining half of her sandwich, the piece she had offered to him, and wrapped it in a translucent wax paper before tucking it into her satchel. Doug and Leon appeared in the kitchen doorway just then, looking jazzed as ever to be heading out. "I'll be back later," Frey murmured to him as she walked by, her troubled expression morphing into a pleasant smile as she approached her companions. "Don't wait up."

Vishnal stepped aside and allowed her to pass him, watching her as she glanced back at him before turning the corner and heading out the front door of her room. Her two party members hovered close on her heels, choosing not to question heavy atmosphere. Vishnal couldn't remember feeling more envious of anyone than he had at that moment.

* * *

She had told him not to wait for her return, but naturally he couldn't help himself. He tried to keep busy so it didn't look like he was waiting for her return, but it was utterly apparent to anyone who tried to speak with him that his mind was elsewhere. Clorica asked him to water the potted plants in the main room of the castle and he dumped the entire pitcher in one. Volkanon asked him to run to the store and pick up some rice for dinner, and he came back with three bags of flour and four apples in tow. He was very apologetic of course, but they had both overheard the disagreement between the two young people and so they cut him some slack and didn't say anything.

The castle was quiet as he waited for Frey to return. Eerily quiet, he decided, and so he moved out into the courtyard to sweep some of the falling leaves from the paths and rake them into neat little piles so he wouldn't have quite so much to do in the morning.

Eventually he thought to glance at the pocket watch tucked in his waistcoat. The hours had begun to stack, and he noticed with dread that the sun was beginning to set. Where were they? She had suggested that she would be late, obviously, but she was usually back for dinner every night even when she intended to be out late.

Vishnal swallowed hard. She would be furious if he went to get her, so what could he do but wait? If she was still upset with him it made sense that she'd stay out later anyways.

By the time the sun was down and dark had settled and the princess was still absent he was beginning to really worry. She was an early-sleeper-early-riser, and he would know. It was long after when she would retire now, and neither her nor her party had come back. He threw on his coat and headed outside to peer around the gates. Perhaps they were just returning? His efforts proved fruitless, the adventurers were no where in sight. Well, maybe he'd missed them? He strolled as casually as he could manage towards the General Store and asked Blossom if she had seen the young dwarf. She smiled kindly and said he had gone off for the afternoon. Vishnal was shocked to find that she didn't seem overly concerned and tried to mimic her calmness.

"So he didn't mention what time he'd be back then?" asked Vishnal one more time, closing his coat and approaching the door. Blossom confirmed. "Well alright. Thank you anyways. Have a pleasant evening, then."

Failing to find them in the store, Vishnal supposed perhaps they had gone to the bath house to relax after all of their hard work. He momentarily bristled at the thought before charging to the other side of town, less calm but trying to maintain a brisk smile as he moved through the evening crowds. Lin Fa greeted him cheerfully but denied ever seeing the small group come through the doors. For good measure he peered into the men's bath and saw no one but Porcoline, so he moved on.

Returning to the empty castle, he waited.

"Perhaps you should go to bed," Volkanon said gruffly from behind him. He jumped.

"I-I-I am sorry, no, I was just –"

"She'll be back by morning, I'm sure," he insisted, "and you'll have to be up early to get her ready to get to work. You need to rest." He patted his shoulder and continued to the door of the butler's chambers. Vishnal reluctantly drew away from his perch against the window and followed.

Even after having returned to his own bedroom, Vishnal did not sleep.

* * *

After hours of watching the clock, 3AM finally clocked in. He could hear the sound of the grandfather clock in the hallway chiming off the time and forced his legs to stay flat against the bed instead of launching off to check Frey's room again. Naturally, he failed. He padded across the castle carefully so as not to wake the other residents and found her room still vacant. Disappointment filled his gut along with guilt. She had been so upset with him earlier, perhaps it was his own fault that she wasn't coming home?

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as he heard the commotion. He grabbed the candle and matches from Frey's bedside table, the wax of the candle nearly worn down to the wick with use, and moved carefully out her bedroom door.

A wave of relief washed over him. Leon and Doug were coming up the castle courtyard path. The knots in his stomach began to unfurl until he realized that the blonde was not following them. Looking more closely, he noticed Doug clutching his side which was wrapped in a striped purple scarf that Vishnal recognized as the yarn Frey had invested in when she was trying to take up knitting with Dolly. Leon had Doug propped up on his shoulder as they moved slowly inside the town walls and turned left, he assumed towards the clinic.

"Where's Frey?" Vishnal shouted. Doug started at the sound of his voice, but Leon merely turned a steely gaze towards him.

"She sent us back," Leon explained, "this idiot here got in the warpath of a Golem. She said she would be along shortly, she just wanted to pick up a few more things."

"You just left her?!" gasped Vishnal, flinching at the sound of horror in his own voice. "You go out as a party in _numbers_ for a reason, I can't believe you two!"

"She's stronger than the two of us combined," Leon retorted, gesturing between the wounded dwarf and himself. "Besides, she insisted. I would have liked to bring her with us and go again tomorrow but she said she had plans tomorrow instead. You know how she gets when she gets something in her head."

"_You _should have insisted, she –"

"Look, I don't have time for you right now, Vishnal. She'll be fine. She's great with a sword and she can definitely look after herself. Doug here will _not _be fine if we don't see Jones soon."

"Frey promised," Doug spoke up, "that she'd be back in an hour. If that makes you feel better."

The two of them left him standing there, feeling worse than ever. The two of them seemed to feel that Frey didn't need the help of people around her, but as her butler Vishnal couldn't help but feel as though it was his job to take care of her. Though he remembered, with a pang in his chest, that that was what got him in trouble in the first place.

* * *

Vishnal can't remember a time when an hour felt so long.

He can see the barest stretch of sunlight beginning to yawn into the clouds overhead, barely streaming through and illuminating the damp sprinkle of rain that started maybe forty minutes prior by his watch. Leaning against the steps to the entrance of the castle, he tucks his face into his palms and breathes in deeply. The sound of crunching gravel, however, causes him to snap to alert and sit up straight. He's met with a wave of relief when the princess, looking haggard and worn out with damp messy hair and a shirt that tore at her arm to reveal a bloody gash, comes stumbling down the walkway. She sees him and her lips quiver.

He wonders if she's in pain and opens his mouth to ask her but snaps it closed just as quickly. For a moment he fears that she's going to slip right by him and just head inside without a word, but as she approaches she drapes herself against his chest and wraps her arms around him.

"What on earth are you still doing up?" she asked. Her voice is muted by the fabric of his coat.

"You weren't home."

She snorts and squeezes her arms tighter, hissing softly as the movement stretches the wound on her arm. Vishnal pulls away and laces her fingers with hers to lead her into the back room. It's still far too early to visit the bath house to get her cleaned up, so this will have to do.

Frey sees the sink and watches him begin pumping water into a clean basin that sits nearby on the shelf. The silence between them is comfortable on her part, but as his ears flush bright red she wonders if he's still upset about the little fit she had had earlier. Without his asking her to she strips off the mutilated shirt and sits on a bucket in nothing but the cotton bra and the remainder pants portion of her armour. She smiles absently when the warmth in his ears spreads visibly to the rest of his face when he turns to her.

Her smile is sleepy. The single candle he struck in the corner gives the room a warm glow. He dips a rag in the water and it feels similarly warm against his skin.

"Were you worried?" she murmurs. Vishnal sits in front of her and drags the soft cloth against the blood, clearing it away to assess the actual damage. It looks superficial, but he still takes great care as he treats it. The princess leans forward as he works so that her head rests against the shoulder just in front of her; he can't see what he's doing anymore but he is still careful not to jostle her.

"I _am_ sorry –"

"_Shoosh,_" he responds, tentatively reaching up to pet her hair, "_I'm _sorry. I know you can do things all by yourself. And you're_ good _at them. But you work so hard all the time, I just– I wanted– I know it drives you mad, but I really just wanted to help you for once. I know I'm no good at cooking and I'm still learning to be a master butler but I still wanted to help." He pauses and heaves a breath.

"I know."

"And I'm sorry I snapped at you about Doug. That was foolish and unrelated, and I really didn't mean anything by it."

"I know."

He nods and continues to apologize, sitting her up straight so he can tear another clean cloth and wrap it around the clotting tear in her shoulder as a temporary bandage. Frey responds at every pause with a simple 'I know', and a hand that strokes up his arm or along his jawline.

"I didn't mean to keep you up all night," she tells him and he smiles gently. "Don't apologize anymore, please. I know. I'm sorry, too. You're so sweet all the time. . . and how do I repay you? I yell and I make you worried."

Before long they're all smiles. He apologizes once more, and she returns the sentiment in kind before closing her arms around him again, both only vaguely aware that her shirt is still dangling from the back of her pants. Before long they're in the foyer again. She glances down the dark hallways to where her room is and then turns back to Vishnal who smiles back at her expectantly. She had explained how she had been trapped in a dungeon that had monsters much stronger than she had expected, and he listened wide eyed and marvelled at her bravery once again. Doug had been injured and she was worried about him keeping up, so she sent her two partners back and set onwards anyways since she had come so far anyways and was sure an exit must be up ahead rather to looping back and having the travel just as far next time.

". . . Well, I guess I'm going to go. . . to sleep, I mean," she stammers. Reluctantly he steps away from her and lets her move similarly.

"Good night, princess," he says. He's comforted by the sight of her moving towards her own bedroom and the knowledge that she'll be in her room instead of who-knows-where. He turns to go to his own bedroom, finally allowing himself to feel weary despite the fact that he will have to wave up in less than a few hours by this point.

"I love you."

He freezes. Frey stands in the dimly lit hallway and twists the shirt in her fist. Please, he thinks, oh god please don't let him be dreaming. It seems like a matter of seconds before he's launched himself across the room again in long strides and he enters the circle of her arms for perhaps the hundredth time that night. In milliseconds their mouths were connecting, hands roaming, eyes closed, tongues tangled. His palms pressed against the small of her back and drew her as close as he could manage, and she made soft little noises in the back of her throat against his ministrations.

"Please," she whispered, "please come back to my room. If you want to help me, maybe you could help me with this little problem I have. . ."

Vishnal's mouth went dry. "What about everyone else?" he croaked. Her shrug is nonchalant and her lips are suddenly at his throat in a flurry of teeth and tongue that teases and tastes the skin there. He lets her pull him forwards against against her, teasing him as she shimmies away and it forces him to follow if he wants to maintain contact.

When they get eventually get to her room she spins them and presses him against the bed frame, situating herself on his hips and continuing to kiss him softly. Soon his expressive mouth goes slack against hers, so she leans back and looks at him with bright, aroused eyes.

Pressed against her pillow and tangled in her sheets, Vishnal fell asleep almost instantly. Frey stifles a laugh and presses another kiss to the corner of his lips before gently nudging the young man over and curling into his side. His arms curl around her unconsciously and her name drifts from his lips against her ear in a gust of breath. In moments she's asleep against him, warm and comfortable. And looking forward to being helped by him again in the future.

* * *

**A/N: I know it feels a little rushed, but I'm actually pretty okay with how it turned out. Might do a lengthy (M Rated) chapter 2, if I can muster up the motivation. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Greetings, everyone! Thank you so, so much for all the kind reviews that you guys left. They really mean a lot to me, and it's really thanks to you guys that this chapter came to be. I'm just very sorry it took me so long to get it out. **

**Anyways, as promised, please note the change in rating - while the sex is very vanilla, it is also very present and is not suitable for minors. This means that readers under the age of 18 need to turn back. **

**In any case, here it is. I hope you like it.**

* * *

When he woke up the next morning, Vishnal did not expect to still be in the princess's room. Surely last night hadn't been real? There was no way his life could be that wonderful, was there? The warm breath ghosting along his neck and firm body tangled around him served as some convincing proof, but still he wondered if perhaps he were lingering in the sleepy remnants of a dream. It certainly seemed like it, with the pretty young woman heavy and relaxed in the circle of his arms, a position he'd never imagined he could have held in any version of his reality. He shifted against the princess, stroking her hair and hesitantly pressing a chaste kiss to the corner of her slightly parted lips, to which he received a response in the form of soft murmuring against the skin just below his ear as she nuzzled in deeper to his body heat.

"Princess," he whispered, "it's morning."

"Mnn. Noooo. I'm glad you're still here," she whispered back, "I'm glad you didn't leave. Just stay like this. I need a few more minutes." His chest swelled at the heady sleep-induced scratchiness of her voice and the slow smile that curled her lips as she cracked an eye open to peek at him. Her shirt was still absent and her hair, which she had neglected to remove from its style, was tangled and loosened around her shoulders. He felt his face grow hot and was sure she could feel it against hers.

He tilts his head down to kiss her sweetly again, and she responds clumsily with a throaty giggle and a hand that tangles into his hair.

There's a comfortable, warm moment of silence where his hand lightly roams her body a little, pausing at her arm for a short inspection of the damage there, and then travelling down to rest against her bare hip and drum at the soft skin there. Her eyes slip closed again.

As if he _could_ have left before she woke up. How could he have passed up seeing the Princess this way? He had experienced waking her up in the mornings, of course, but he had never been an active participant in the wake-up proceedings as such. He also noted, with a sense of smugness even he could not suppress, how sluggish she was with him in her bed compared to mornings where it seemed like she hopped out of bed and flew out the door. She slotted herself against him more comfortably and made a soft, purring little groan as she stretched her limbs out. His hands shakily circled her waist again to cradle her against him as he moved in for another kiss, this time daring to dip his tongue past her top lip and trace her teeth, to which she responded instantaneously.

"VISHNAL!"

Volkanon's voice boomed from across the castle, startling the couple and causing them to leap away from each other. Vishnal snapped away from the warm body against him and rolled unstoppably from the edge of the bed to collapse in a heap of twisted blankets and pillows onto the floor with a resounding thud, while the princess launched into her closet in search for a replacement shirt after neglecting to locate one the night before for _unsavoury reasons_. Vishnal had also neglected to change from his coat the night before, and looked down in dismay as he realized his visible dishevelment.

Naturally there was nothing he could do about it now. He could hear doors down the hallway being opened and shut as he assumed the other butlers had gone looking for him.

Oh gods. _Oh gods. _Should he go out the back door and come in from the garden? Volkanon and Clorica sounded increasingly close to the Princess' bedroom door, if he left now he was guaranteed to run into them. But they probably expected Frey to already be _out _in the garden so would coming out _that _waylook _more_ suspicious? Wait, were they even hiding this? What _was_ this? He'd had her tongue in his mouth sure but did that automatically mean they were dating? Did she –

"So I'll find you later," Frey concedes, coming from the closet in a pink outfit he had never seen before, looking far more put together than he felt and sounding like she was finishing a statement he hadn't heard the rest of. She must have noted the panicked look on his face because her expression immediately softened into a bemused, smitten sort of grin. How absolutely _Vishnal _of him. She pecked him on the cheek, amused when he flushed like she had stripped for him again, and shoved a potted plant into his hands. She then scurried out the garden doors so she could get to work on her daily chores, leaving the flabbergasted young man to his own devices.

No sooner than she had left did the door to her bedroom fly open, revealing a displeased Volkanon and a purple head of hair just over his shoulder, a sleepy Clorica who had been unhelpfully trudging along behind the head butler in their search.

"Do you have any idea how late you are!?" he said, exasperated. "This is going to be taken into account for your score this week. What are you doing in here?"

"I-I- um... I... plant?" He could have hit himself. Clearly, his mouth and his brain were experiencing some disconnect. Perhaps it was a result of all those electrifying kisses he'd had the pleasure of experiencing; perhaps he'd fried a few vital cells? He chuckled to himself, but bit back the sound when he focused back in on the less-than-amused Volkanon now staring at him with a confused look rather than the frustrated one from before.

"Yes, well..." the elder cleared his throat, "you two head down to my office. I'm going to check in on the princess, I expect she's exhausted after her late arrival last night."

Vishnal swallowed hard and grabbed Clorica's hand on his way past the manly gentleman, dragging her after him in his haste to escape the situation. When they arrived and seated themselves in the chairs across from Volkanon's desk Vishnal braced his hands against his knees and panted to catch his breath. Clorica watched him sleepily for a moment before her lips curled upwards into a knowing smile. "You _did it_, didn't you?" she whispered.

"_No!_" Vishnal wheezed back, but he was pretty sure that the explosive reddening of his face was less than convincing, even if it was true.

The other butler leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes and wiggling until she was sufficiently comfortable. "You _totally _did. Congrats, I didn't think you had it in you."

If he was totally honest, neither did he.

* * *

Frey finished up in the fields around noon, an hour and a half later than she usually did, and promptly made her way to the throne room to get some last minute duties out of the way. Arthur met up with her, and the two deliberated on the efforts they should put forth on tourism as well as internal development. When Vishnal came in and saw her, she smiled pleasantly and he distractedly collided directly with a wall.

This went on for a few days. They'd steal kisses here and there between each of their individual work and then they'd soak up all they could of each in the hours after. Some nights he'd slip into her room and share warmth with her, other nights she'd sneak past Volkanon's room and climb into his bed to surprise him in the morning when he awoke to the blonde practically glued to his side. Initially they had agreed to keep their relationship to themselves, but stealthy they were not; people soon heard about the two of them and it got to the point where they could no longer walk down the street together without someone stopping them to make a comment or tease them. At first Vishnal was horrified by the attention, but when Frey started to flush and smile a sweet little smile and twirl her fingers around his in response he found that could live with it.

"It's so cute it's almost sickening!" cried Margaret, clasping her hands together and then diving for a quill to start scrawling on a crumply piece of sheet music. She had decided to host another one of her slumber parties and could barely contain herself to wait for the princess's boyfriend to leave after they kissed at the door. "I could compose love song after love song based on the way you look at each other alone!"

"Please don't, Meg," Frey laughed back. She pressed her lips against Vishnal's one more time, looping her arms around his neck and tugging him down, before sending him on his way with a dreamy look in his eyes. There was a murmur of laughter from the other girls in the room as the door swung shut. Margaret looked up from her parchment and winked playfully, before returning the nib to the sheet and continuing to scrawl notes messily. Inevitably, it seemed, conversation drifted to the boys about town. Especially since they now had an insider's opinion on one of them.

"So this is like... the first time you've gone to sleep without him, then? In how long?"

"I bet he's like a furnace in the sheets."

"_Totally _a cuddler, right?"

"Hn. You two seem very attached."

The questions kept flying, and the young princess did her best to keep track of and answer all of them as she could, but eventually she just pushed her red face into her palms and waited for the amused giggling by her friends to subside.

"You don't have to tell us," Meg said as the room got quiet and Frey's countenance had returned to a regularly rosy composure, "but we're dying to know. Is he good?" Her eyebrows waggled suggestively. "Because it seems like he would be all about '_serving_' his partner to me, but how would we know, right?"

Immediately Frey felt warmth soak her skin again. "_Good_?" she asked in surprise. "I don't know, I guess? I mean, we've never done anything more than... touching, you know?" The room erupted into gales of laughter and Frey couldn't help but start to grin as her friends _ooh_'d and began to talk about anything and everything from there. She got over her bashful feelings as her friends didn't push her from there and enjoyed the rest of the night. Even stoic Dolce sported a pretty smile as instruments were handed out and they played together until the moon was high in the sky and they were all exhausted.

Meg scooted closer to her as she continued to speak to the group about her latest song as she strummed a harp absently, despite the fact that half the room was already asleep, and Frey couldn't help but tear up a little at how truly blessed she felt; blessed that of all the kingdoms in the world she had dropped from an airship into this one and met all of these beautiful people.

Though. . . as happy as she found herself, she wouldn't admit to it when she had a hard time falling asleep that night without the usual warm body next to and wrapped around her.

* * *

A few days went by. Snow flew and coated the ground in a shiny blanket and while days were shorter and there was less farming to be done, Frey found herself out an exploring much more now that she had the time to spare. Doug recovered from his injuries, as had she, and insisted she bring him along when she went, so she was finding herself spending a lot of time travelling and thinking. Mostly about what her friends had said to her at Meg's slumber party, much to her chagrin. Was it too soon in their relationship to proposition Vishnal about sex? Was he even interested in any of that? Sure she had thought about it before, she had thought that had been where they were headed _that night _when he fell asleep after the adrenaline of worrying for her had worn off after all, but what if that _hadn't _been what was happening? What if Vishnal was content with touching and kissing, and she made him feel uncomfortable by suggesting that she wanted more than that?

It wasn't as though he had made any move for anything else either. It was absolutely clear to Frey that he loved her and he loved having her close to him, but his warm wandering hands never drifted too far below her belt; he never asked. Did that have some profound meaning, or was he simply just as nervous as she was? She would never know if she didn't ask.

"Do you ever. . ." Frey cleared her throat one night after a long afternoon of spelunking, as she pulled her long pigtails from their ties and started brushing out her hair, "U-uhm. . . No, never mind me, it's fine." She scowled at her own cowardice.

Vishnal shed his coat and hung it in her closet before changing into the spare set of sleepwear he'd left in her room when he'd put laundry away that afternoon. It was perhaps a little presumptuous of him but he _had_ more recently been spending nights away from his room since Frey's was more private. Walking past Clorica in his night clothing on his way to his girlfriends' bedroom had become increasingly embarrassing lately, especially since she had somehow learned of her misunderstanding of the events of his and Frey's first night together and had decide to tease him mercilessly for _'not following through'. _

As he came back into the main room he saw Frey wringing her hands slightly, pouting and looking altogether troubled.

"'Do I ever' – what, love? Are you sure everything's alright, Princess?" he asked. She smiled softly, reciprocating naturally as he leaned in for a kiss and making a little noise of surprise when he dodged her teasingly at the last second. Vishnal slid by her and turned down the sheets of her bed out of habit, before catching himself and climbing into them. He was relieved to see the curve of her lips but still troubled by the tension she held in her shoulders. He gently patted the empty space next to him when she met his eyes again and Frey quickly dropped the hairbrush in her hands and climbed into the circle of his arms.

"Everything is fine. . ." she murmured, pressing her cold face into the crook of his neck and delighting in the way he held her closer to warm her winter-chilled skin. "I just. . . was curious about something. That's all."

"What a shock," he teased. "The princess thinking hard about some mystery? Unheard of." His tone was light but he didn't push her as she seemed to gather her thoughts.

She bit her lip, shivering as his warmth melted her. She wanted to ask, she really did, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to ask him for the right reasons? She had certainly _wanted _him before they began dating, but she never really felt rushed to do anything about it before; she much preferred to let her relationship with Vishnal expand and grow naturally as it was wont to do but for some reason she couldn't get this _deviancy _out of her head! Perhaps it was knowing that her friends were expectant of this? That was fine with her, but she didn't want to press forward and have Vishnal think she was only after his lower half.

"If you want to, you can tell me anything. You know that right?" he breathed into her ear.

She shivered, and kissed his clavicle.

"I know," she replied.

"Okay."

"Okay." They were quiet for a beat, or ten if she counted by the steady rhythm of Vishnal's pulse. "I wondered if you were attracted to me." She could feel the rumble of laughter in his chest.

"Oh, is that all? Of course I am, Princess. I care about you very much." His hands stroked her hair, tugging just slightly so she would tilt her head up to him and accept another slow kiss. His tongue traced her lip for effect, dipping in just slightly in a way that left her breathless.

She purred in response, low in her throat, and tried to fuse herself together with him, tugging gently at the collar of his shirt until he was hovering over her and propped up by the flat palm by her head and rubbing his thumb along her hip with those large warm hands. "I understand that, Vishnal," she replied. "I love you too. _So _much. But are you _attracted_ to me?"

"W-w-what?" he said, face turning passionate. "I am, very much so. You're the most beautiful, wonderful woman I've ever met, I –" His face flushed bright red, seemingly shocked by her enquiries and worried by her apparent doubt, but cutting himself off as his embarrassment caught up with his mouth. Where was this coming from, was she doubting his affections or was this ultimately about something else? He stared down at her, this beautiful enigma who looked so good spread out beneath him. He searched her eyes, which dodged his when they met, and observed the subtle blooming of colour on her cheeks that he was sure matched his.

Staring at her underneath him, he could feel himself growing hot. He paused for just a moment to take her in, trailing his gaze from her face to her pale neck, mirroring her when she swallowed hard against a lump in her throat. She was panting lightly, and his eyes swept bashfully to her moving chest before he firmly planted a kiss at the base of her throat and sucked hard at the spot. "I'm so attracted to you I don't know what to do sometimes," he whispered.

Frey threw her arms around his neck, embarrassed by his declaration but so relieved she began to laugh quietly. Her hold on him was tight, but she felt so warm and loved inside that the tension in her body vanished and she was left with only a hot ball of want low inside her. "When you're ready," she cooed into his ear, " if you're ever ready, I'd very much like to have sex with you."

Vishnal's mouth went dry in response to her words, feeling hotter than before. Somehow it seemed like she always had the upper hand against him. She could always leave him speechless. She was always ready to initiate the next step – and successfully, despite whatever nerves she was facing. He truly was in awe of her.

He slipped his own arms under and around her, cradling her wordlessly against him and hesitantly letting the full weight of his body drop onto her so she could _feel _what she had done to him, without even trying. Her legs drew back and bent at the knees, accepting him as the puzzle piece that fit against her and crossing her ankles behind his back.

She gasped when she felt how his body was responding with arousal to her, and felt her own body respond favourably in kind. His voice was rapturous when he moaned in her ear. "I never did get to _help_ you the other night. I was so exhausted, princess. . . but I'm awake now, and eager to_ please._"

"Pl_ease_," echoed Frey, rolling her hips upwards against him as he mouthed at her jaw and worked his way down to her chest. He slowly lowered the strap of her nightgown, eyeing her questioningly and checking her comfort levels only to be met with teary green eyes and hands that cupped his cheeks and forced him to stare into them.

"Are you saying yes to this?" she asked, toying with the hair at the nape of his neck. His clothed hips stuttered forward against hers, kissing her fiercely when she gasped sweetly again.

"Are you waiting for me to say yes?" he teased back, though he blushed fervently as her sweet scent invaded his senses and dizzied him, rutting against her more and creating a burning friction. "You want me to say yes, don't you, princess?" And she babbled in response, assuring him she would be okay to stop if he wanted to. He hummed a quiet moan softly as she cried out when his fingers dipped low into her cotton underwear and felt how wet and warm she was. He shivered, swallowing his embarrassment and focused on the way her eyebrows were blissfully scrunched up, or the way her mouth hung open as they moved together, or the way she tried to watch him but her eyes kept drifting closed under his ministrations. "I'm saying yes, princess. Yes _yes, yes._"

She deliriously tugged at his shirt until they managed to get it off somehow, and then they were all teeth, and touching, testing, teasing. . . She raised her arms so he could take off her night gown and let him escape her legs so they could draw off her panties while shedding his pants and leaving them exposed but completely comfortable in the others embrace.

One hand pressed her torso to his as their mouths and tongues met again and again, while the other explored her folds and stroked her clit. She reached for his length to reciprocate but he caught her hand and redirected it to rest on his shoulder where her nails immediately dug in as he applied more force to distract the young woman. Her thighs quaked. She squirmed violently, simultaneously trying to escape the intense pleasure that shot through her while trying to soak up more of it if she could. He feared if she touched him he wouldn't last long enough to finish this beautiful thing they had started tonight. He had barely been touched and he thought he might explode.

"This isn't. . ." she choked on her words slightly and allowed Vishnal to swallow a moan, "This isn't one of your 'duties', you know? I want to make you feel good too."

"I know that, princess. You feel so good. _Oh, princess. . . Frey._" his voice sounded strange to his own ears but his lover responded affectionately in his arms.

"Please. . . would you. . .I-Inside?" her voice came out in broken fragments, and Vishnal couldn't help the swelling in his chest when it struck him that he was the one who had made her so ruined, who had caused her to sound so utterly debauched, and at that moment the throbbing of his cock became so unbearable that he relented his firm touch and moved to reposition them both. He had to make an effort not to cum when she whined and spread herself wider as his fingers pulled away.

On Frey's part she felt embarrassed: the heat in Vishnal's eyes was unlike anything she had ever seen before. Especially not directed at herself. He was always sort of aloof; loving but sweetly naive; passionate, and yet cautiously gentle. Her heart raced when he pulled away from her and she found herself unable to stop the sounds that fell from her lips, but she eagerly moved to receive him. As he lined up their bodies and began to fill her, she convulsed backwards at the sensation. She had no frame of reference, but he made her feel fuller than she ever had before and he only seemed to keep moving deeper and deeper.

"Wait, wait!" she cried out, clinging to his shoulders where he leaned over her. Vishnal froze, and then kissed her face anywhere he could reach soothingly.

Her hands trembled as she cupped his face, before shifting her hips against his. He carefully pressed in slightly further, thrusting shallowly and continuing to kiss wherever he could. Frey could feel the perspiration starting to cover them both in a thin sheen, pressing her nose into his hair just behind his ear as his scent became more profound. His thrusts became more sporadic and harder, losing rhythm as they moved together, and his fingers came down to rub firmly at her pleasure point once again. Her nerves crackled under her skin. They tried to muffle their voices as they were not positive how their voices would carry through the castle, but Frey was vocal and hard to quell.

That is, until she suddenly became ghostly silent; her voice shrunk inside her throat and turned to quiet panting. He pulled away, worried she needed him to slow down again, but her arms ensnared him and her hips frotted fervently without sign of slowing.

"I-I'm so. . . P-pah-please, pleeease, ple-ase, Vishnal!" His named turned into a quiet mantra on her tongue. He pushed her sweaty bangs back on her forehead and kissed her deeply, until she let out a sharp cry that dissipated quickly in the heat of the room and her entire body shook. Her inner walls clamped down on his cock and instantly he was blinded by a white light that exploded in his vision and found himself shaking against her as well. They rode the wave of their orgasms together before the room darkened again and the only sound left was their hard breathing; their breath mingled but neither of them moved to speak.

Vishnal eased himself out of the smaller blonde, feeling her twitch sensitively against him and stroking himself to ease himself down more than anything.

"I love you," murmured Frey, kissing his chin. Vishnal stroked her hair and smiled fondly, responding in kind.

She rolled him over and looped her arms around him, fitting herself against his broad back, spooning him and running her hands along his arms as they basked in the afterglow. As he grew sleepier she pried herself away to get a washcloth, to clean them both up with before they slept. She shushed him when he tried to protest and get it for her and slipped her nightgown back on before stumbling slightly in the right direction.

When she came back with a cloth and a basin only half full, she found her loving boyfriend sitting up, on a set of different sheets while the other ones lay bunched on the floor. She opened her mouth to scold him, when he cut her off.

"Princess? Would you like it if I called you 'Master' in bed?"

Oh.

"I don't know," she replied. "Would you?"

The blush that immediately turned all of the skin she could see bright glowing red told her that she would definitely be trying that out in the future.

* * *

**Practice safe sex.**

**Anywho, thanks again! / I'm sure I'll be posting something again soon, so, you know. Watch out for that.**


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